Machine vises for heavy duty machining operations impose particular requirements on the jaw support structure and vise jaw itself to hold a workpiece fixed or immobile both in the processing of clamping the workpiece in place and during machining operations. One such machine vise which is characterized by its ability to eliminate shifting or tilting of the workpiece is that sold by Kurt Manufacturing Company under the trademark "ANGLOCK.RTM.". In the ANGLOCK.RTM. vise, the jaw support bed has a master or stationary jaw affixed to one end, and a slidable jaw is characterized by having a spherical segment which upon the application of forces to the jaw tends to draw the jaw downwardly against the base or bed, as opposed to tilting upwardly. Nevertheless, the ANGLOCK.RTM. vise, as is the case with so many other machine vises, fails to make adequate provision for interchangeable use of different vise jaws according to the machine operation to be performed and the configuration of the particular workpiece to be machined or clamped. Not only is the setup procedure laborious and time-consuming, but has definite limitations in terms of the number of different types of vise jaws which can be mounted on the jaw support bed.
It is therefore proposed to facilitate attachment of different vise jaws, including soft jaws, to a common jaw support bed, by substituting a novel and improved jaw adaptor assembly for the existing stationary jaw and which will accommodate any number of different types of vise jaws. Further, in heavy duty machining operations, it is important that each stationary jaw be firmly anchored to the jaw support bed so as to effectively form a unitary part of the bed and to transmit forces directly into the jaw support bed while maintaining accurate alignment of the workpiece; and it is equally important that the set-up time be held to a minimum in accomplishing the foregoing.
In the past, it has been proposed to employ a combination of key members and connecting bolts for interchangeable connection of jaw sets. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,191,367 to A. S. Speiser et al utilizes a combination of key members and connecting bolts for mounting of a master jaw and movable jaw on the bed of a jaw support structure as well as utilizing a combination of interfitting dovetail grooves and projections together with the insertion of threaded fasteners for connection of a vise jaw to a master jaw. Various different approaches have been previously followed in the interchangeable attachment of different vise jaws to a master jaw in a vise system, representative patents being U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,437,654 to P. Chiappetti; 876,228 to A. J. Pereles; and C. L. Bowling. Generally, such approaches may be characterized either as direct threaded connection by means of horizontally directed bolt members extending between the master jaw and vise jaw, some type of snapfit connection as represented by Chiappetti or interfitting keys and keyways as represented by U.S. Pat. No. 164,291 to E. Gleason et al. Other patents of interest are U.S. Pat. Nos. 445,983 to W. B. Dwight and 3,002,726 to D. Ford.